Tied Together like a Ribbon: A Pokemon Story
by Chibi Wolf Pup
Summary: When a coordinator starts a new journey in a new region, things don't go as planned. Humiliated during her first contest, she is labeled as the laughing stock of the contest world. Shady characters lurk through her mind, making her wonder what's going on. Making her wonder why she came to this region. But with the help of one boy, maybe she can make it through. OC story
1. Prologue

**AN: Hey everyone! Boy, it sure has been a while since I've been on this site…  
Anyway, I decided to create a new story that I've been working on for a while, a Pokemon story this time. Much different from my other stories. I'm definitely going to strive to finish this one, since I'm so invested into it. Hopefully it'll turn out well though.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Pokemon in this story, nor do I take credit for anything that is not mine. The OC's in this character are completely my idea.**

The blazing lights appeared before her eyes, blinding her almost as she stepped out onto the stage, basking the sounds of cheering that echoed around the arena. A wide grin broke out across the girl's lips, revealing her slightly crooked teeth, as she listened to it all. It was so... Exhilarating, in a way, to hear the crowd cheer for her; to egg her on to do her best. Sure it might have only been right for the crowd to cheer for everyone who was brave enough to step on this stage, even if they didn't particularly care for the person it was only courtesy to cheer them on, she couldn't help but think that this was only for her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, her chest heaving up and down, before she opened her eyes again and looked at the scene before her.

A spot light shot down on her, making her squint her eyes a little from the brightness of the light. She stood straight and didn't let it affect her. She was used to this anyway, what with her having done this so many times in the past. It still surprised her to think that just doing this process every time -getting in front of the crowd that is- still made her the slightest bit nervous, but she refused to let it bother her like it did in the past. She had done this too much, she figured, to let it make her lose her concentration. "Now or never..."

Bringing her arm out to extend it above her head, she held a Poke Ball in her hand, a capsule surrounding the red and white ball with a seal attached to the middle of it. The lights bounced off the ball, and when she twirled the light only seemed to follow it. "Let's show your stuff. Go, Electric!" She let go of the Poke ball and watched as it went in the air, not too high but then again not to low, and watched as it opened up, sending out a shimmering white, glittering light. Bolts of yellow electricity shot from the ball, springing here and there around the arena, and the 'oh's' and 'ah's' from the crowd could be heard as they watched the spectacle before them. A figure soon appeared in the lights that came from the ball, and once the figure came into full view glitter exploded out, as well as a little more electric bolts.

When the Electrike appeared out of the ball, he was airborne, and his green coat with yellow details adorning his body seemed to glisten. Electric threw his head around before he did a front flip and landed on the ground gracefully. The glittering lights from before had faded by the time the Electrike had made it to the ground, but his impressive stature, no matter how small he might be, seemed to bring in a different air of its own. The Pokemon barked before he turned his head to look at his trainer, Tessalynn, giving her a quick smirk and a nod.

Tessalynn nodded back at the Pokemon before she, again, extended her arm out and pointed in front of her. "Electric, why don't we dazzle them with your-" The words were caught in her throat, though, and she was suddenly unable to speak. The girl's eyes widened as she looked into the crowd, a figure standing out before her. A man, it looked like, was standing, but his face was shrouded by the shadows. She couldn't figure out why, but his presence bothered her...

The same feeling must have been mutual towards Electric as well because he too became distracted and was looking in the same direction in which the man was standing. But for whatever reason he was growling, his fangs glinting in the light. Tessalynn could hear the crowd beginning to murmur, wondering why they weren't doing anything. Still the two were transfixed by the sight.

It was as if everything had vanished into thin air. All that Max could see was the spot that she was standing in with Electric, and the man standing a few feet away from them. She could still hear things though, oddly enough, so maybe she wasn't as transfixed as she had thought she was. Nevertheless, it seemed like things were standing still for that moment. "Electric... Who is that?" She blinked, her muscles rigid as she grit her teeth. She could feel beads of sweat beginning to form on her brows. Something wasn't right.

The man lowered his head and turned around, his back facing them, and shook his head. And soon, he started walking away, and eventually he was gone.

"And why does it feel like I know him?"

**AN: So, what did you all think? Probably kind of a slow beginning, but it'll get better once the story starts to develop. I'll post up the second chapter to this very soon, maybe even today. Well, thanks for reading. Read and review please!**


	2. Chapter 1

**AN: And so, here is the second chapter (technically the first since the last chapter was the prologue) of this story. This one is definitely longer than the last, so hopefully it'll be just as good, if not better.**

**Disclaimer: I own none of the Pokemon in this story, nor do I take credit for anything that is not mine. The OC's are my idea though.**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Leaning against a tree that she had found standing out a little further from the woods that was near them, Tessalynn looked up at the sky. "I can't believe we got disqualified from the contest," she muttered, groaning a little as she heaved a sigh. She banged her head against the trunk of the tree, regretting the action instantly. That definitely did not help with her headache. "This is so embarrassing."

The little grunt from Electric only spurred on the notion that what they had done was unacceptable. "And you didn't make things any better, you know?" Tessalynn looked down at the electric type, raising an eyebrow in question as she gave him an accusing look. He merely snorted and turned his head in the opposite direction, obviously not wanting to recall the events that had happened earlier. "You could have just went away easily, like _I_ did, but of course you had to be the difficult one. Growling at the other contestants when we were escorted off the stage, and then threatening to shock the security when they started to escort us out. Do you understand how difficult it's going to be now to be liked?"

So, their first stop in this new region wasn't going as planned, but hopefully things would start to look up later. For whatever reason, though, Tessalynn could only think that this little incident would cause her more trouble than she thought. Not only had their 'choking' moment been seen by hundreds in the crowd of the contest hall, it was also seen by the thousands, and possibly millions, who had watched it on tv. Way too many people had seen her mistakes, so how was she going to be able to redeem herself?

She shook her head of the thought soon after it entered her mind though. No, she would take this experience as a good one, or at least take it as something that she could learn from. This was only the second time she and one of her Pokemon had ever froze on stage, and the first time it happened was when it was her first contest. But, of course, that was understandable. Now, with her having taken part in so many different contests in three different regions though? Not acceptable. How did she expect people to think that she was champion material?

"We'll just have to try harder I guess, right Electric?" The Pokemon nodded his head and finally looked up at Tessalynn, smiling a little. "Great! Now, why don't we get something to eat? I'm kinda' hungry."

* * *

She had expected to be ridiculed by the towns people, but not like this. As soon as she stepped into a restaurant of the town, a nice, quaint little diner settled in the middle of the bustling town, stares were instantly shot her way and the whispers started. "Is she the one...?" "Yeah, that's the one. The 'Choker'" And those were the only 'nice' comments that she had heard.

Not wanting to draw any more attention to themselves, Tessalynn and Electric settled themselves in the back of the diner in an empty booth. Hardly anyone sat around them, so maybe that would quiet down the rumors that were spreading so quickly. Probably not, but it was worth a shot.

"So, you're the Choker, huh? I can't believe you actually got a nickname like that." Tessalynn picked her head up from the menu that she was looking at, frowning when the girl in front of her spoke.

"Yeah well, it takes a lot of skill to get a nickname like that." Tessalynn frowned as the words came from her mouth. "Not that I choked or anything though."

"Ha! You froze in the middle of the performance. You call that not choking?"

Again Tessalynn frowned at the girl's words, her brows furrowing in agitation as the girl in front of her continued to speak to her in such a manner. "Look, I got distracted is all. I didn't get scared or anything like that, and I definitely did not choke." She leaned back in the seat and crossed her arms over her chest. "What does it matter to you anyway?"

"It doesn't really. Well, maybe it does." She shrugged. "Don't you recognize me?" The girl smirked.

Tessalynn looked the girl up and down, taking in her appearance. Red, curly hair that was cut in a bob style, brown eyes, lightly tanned skin with freckles, a heart shaped face with a pointed nose. Tall in stature with curves in the right places... Nope, Tessalynn just couldn't put her finger on it. "No, I can't say that I do." She gave the girl a wary look, glancing at Electric who continued to stare at the red headed girl, his eyes narrowed a little.

The girl, obviously displeased by the fact that she was not remembered, stomped her foot on the ground as she crossed her arms. "No wonder you're already the laughing stock of the contest world."

"Wait, what?"

"Yes, the laughing stock. Usually someone doesn't win that title until they lose every contest that they've entered, but looks like you've found a way to get it quicker."

"Look," Tessalynn stood up then and slammed her hand against the table, making the salt and pepper shakers shake from the force of the hit, "I am no laughing stock, I can tell you that much. I made one mistake, so what? I can guarantee that I can win the rest of these ribbons without fail, and then win the Grand Finale."

"Oh please. You don't know what you're getting into." And with that, the red head walked off.

Tessalynn clenched her hands into fist as she watched the girl walk off, anger festering in her insides. How dare that girl! Who did she think she was to tell her that she couldn't make it? That girl had to have been a coordinator, so she might have been at that contest, which would probably explain why she knew so much. Or seemed to know anyway.

She sighed as she sat back down and put her elbows on the table as she leaned down on them. Maybe it was a mistake to come to this region. Professor Oak had told her about this place, not much, but he told her a little, and what he said was right. This region wasn't like the rest of them, and she would probably be in shock with the way things were. She just had to figure out a way to conquer this.

"Um, Miss?" Tessalynn picked her head up when the sound of a male entered her ears, and upon noticing the boy who looked to be seventeen, just like herself, with his brown hair laid down and a black and white outfit on with a pad and pencil in his hand, she knew that he was a waiter. "Are you ready to order?"

"Uh, well." She looked down at the menu and sighed. "Honestly, I'm not really sure. I'm a little out of it today, if you haven't heard already." She laughed to herself as she shook her head.

The boy smiled lightly down at Tessalynn before he looked around, making sure that no one was around, and leaned down a little to be at level with the girl. "If it makes you feel any better, I don't think it was that embarrassing. The people around here are just a little judgmental."

"A little?"

"Okay, a lot." He chuckled. "Obviously you're new here."

"What hinted at that?"

"The fact that you're surprised by how quickly things are spreading around here is a good hint." Tessalynn groaned, but it made the waiter chuckle. "I feel kind of bad for what's happening to you. The people can be pretty brutal around here." He paused before turning his head to the side a little. "I've got an idea. Why don't I show you around a little bit."

Tessalynn quickly looked at the boy, giving him a questioning look. "But you haven't even taken my order yet." Despite herself, she found herself grinning before she laughed a little. Her smile only widened when the boy laughed as well.

"I mean after this. After I get off work." He shrugged. "I get off in two hours. So, what do you say?"

She thought about it for a moment before she nodded her head. "Fine." Though she was a little suspicious about him, and about the whole ordeal, how could she say no? He was the first person that had actually been nice to her.

"Good. I'll meet you outside the door in two hours then." He started to walk off then, but stopped when Tessalynn called out to him. "Yeah?"

"You forgot to take my order."

* * *

Though she really hadn't known what to order, the waiter -whom she had yet to know the name of- had picked something out for her and brought it out to her. It still baffled her as to why she was going to be meeting up with him later on, and why he even wanted to, but she figured that she couldn't argue with him. Maybe she would learn a few things about this region, and she definitely needed some pointers. He seemed nice enough too, and seemed like someone that she could trust, but still she was unsure about the whole thing. He said that the people here were different, so what makes him not like one of them?

Tessalynn wasn't sure why, but she continued to think about him while she ate her food, Electric having to bump into her side every once in a while to get her attention. She also thought about the contest too, wondering why that man had struck a cord in her stomach when she caught sight of him. Electric seemed bothered by his presence too, which only made Tessalynn even more wary of him, but it also made her want to know who he was even more. He didn't seem familiar in the slightest bit, though she guessed that could have been on account that she couldn't get a good look at his face from where she was standing, but she had a feeling that he knew her. That undeniable smirk that she saw come across his lips just before he left only seemed to prove that fact even more.

Did she have a stalker then? Highly doubtful, but with her having the past that she did, Tessalynn wouldn't put it against him. Maybe he had seen her from on of her previous performances in another region. But then how did he know that she was going to be there? The thought of the mysterious man only brought the girl's headache back, so she figured it was time to stop thinking about him. Not that it actually worked or anything.

It wasn't long until she was given her bill, and after paying her money she left the diner, ignoring the glances and stares that were sent her way, and headed out the door with Electric on her heels. Both of them looked around, cautious of everyone. Tessalynn had half a mind to look for the man at the contest hall, but she pushed the thought back. She didn't know what he looked like, so how would she even find him?

She groaned in irritation as she rested her hands on the back of her head, her hands weaving through her wavy, dark brown colored hair. "I can't stop thinking about it. Who was that guy?" Her eyes were down cast as she continued to walk down the street, walking past the people that littered the pavement, chattering among themselves, seeming to have a merry time with their day. She looked to Electric then, watching as he continued to swivel his head from side to side, watching everyone and everything. Being her protector like he always was. "Maybe he was just a nobody. He probably thought that the contest was pointless and just left when it was our turn. It couldn't have been anything serious, right Electric?"

The Pokemon merely shrugged his shoulders. He closed his eyes for a second before he opened them back up and stared up at his trainer. The look he gave her seemed to say, "you don't have to worry about anything. I'm here, so stop thinking about it."

Tessalynn grinned. "Yeah, you're right. I should just forget about it." She dropped her hands and bent down to scoop Electric up, hugging him to her chest. "Besides, I doubt if we'll see him again."

Electric squirmed in her grasp before he turned his head to shoot his trainer a glare. He groaned when he was still not put down, but when he finally was, he put his back to Tessalynn and stuck his nose in the air. He grumbled something to himself and continued walking. Oh, how Tessalynn loved to get on her Pokemon's nerves.

The two hours seemed to pass by extremely slow. It was probably because Tessalynn couldn't find herself something to do other than walk, but at least she was able to explore the town a little more by herself. This place was definitely different from what she had seen before in other regions. Buildings surrounded the town, all of them different colors and all of them different heights. A lot of the smaller buildings were surrounded by the taller buildings, making Tessalynn wonder why the builders had created the town to look like this. Red brick paved the roads of the city, the brick being outlined by a cream colored stone. Streamers and other decorative things hung from the buildings, signs and other advertisements hung on everything that could hold something like that. The smell of food drifted from the restaurants, the smell mostly of spice than anything else, and people continued to filter in and out of the open doors around them. Various types of Pokemon walked around with these people, though this also brought a bit of skepticism to Tessalynn. Why were so many Pokemon from different regions all collected in one place?

Never before had she seen Kanto, Hoenn, Johto, and Sinnoh pokemon all together in one place. Sure in the Sinnoh region a lot of the Pokemon from Kanto and a few from the Johto and Hoenn region could be seen, but they were all spaced out between the lands. In this place though? It was as if all of them came from the same place, and no specific region Pokemon ruled over the other. There were also Pokemon that she had never seen before, and Tessalynn figured that they were from the Uniova region. That was the only region that she had not traveled to yet. She would definitely have to tell Professor Oak about this the next time she talked to him.

By the time the two hours were up, the sun was beginning to set and the lights that hung from buildings and streetlights were beginning to come on, bringing a new appearance to the town. The coming of night still did not stop more people from coming, despite the fact that there was no special event going on, as far as Tessalynn knew anyway. Actually, things seemed to be more crowded now, and it took the girl and her electric type Pokemon a little longer to make it back to the diner that she was previously in.

She sat herself down on a bench that sat in front of the diner, Electric sitting right next to her, and sighed as she watched more people walk past her. Tesslaynn shifted her bag and situated it on her lap before she opened the latch and looked into the contents of it. A few potions sat at the bottom of the bag with a few berries place here and there (it was a wonder how none of it had been squished). She also had her Pokedex hidden in one of the many slots of the bag, along with her Pokegear, with she took out after finding, and a few ointments for herself. The time read eight o'clock at night, exactly two hours after she had made this little 'appointment' with this waiter. Where was he?

After ten minutes had passed and there was still no sign of the boy, Tessalynn was beginning to lose hope. "Should have known that he wasn't going to show," she mumbled as she shook her head and looked down at her lap. "I was being played like a fool." She got up to leave, figuring that she had wasted enough time in this place, and slung her bag over her shoulder. "Come on, Electric. Looks like he's a no show."

"Hey, hold up!" Tessalynn, hearing the voice, did not listen to it. There were too many people out, and she doubted that any of the voices were directed towards her. So she pushed the notion away and continued walking. Only when she felt a hand on her shoulder, the fingers clutching onto her a little tightly, did she turn around.

Before any words could come from her mouth, she gasped in surprise. The noise triggered something in Electric's body, and instantly he turned around and growled. Before Tessalynn knew what happened, Electric had released his Spark attack and sent it towards the person who had grabbed onto her, and the hand had let go of her shoulder instantly.

A yell could be heard as the boy was hit with the lightening, and when Tessalynn was able to get a good look at the one who was being attacked, she nearly laughed. "Electric, stop!" Instantly the Pokemon stopped and turned to look at his trainer. He barked at her at the command. "Well, don't get mad at me. Look who you shocked." She pointed to the waiter from the diner.

Electric looked towards the boy, and what looked like a smirk came to his mouth as he looked at the disheveled appearance of the boy. His hair was sticking up in spikes, much to the contrast of what it looked like in the diner when it was laid down, and his eyes were wide. His body seemed to be stuck, frozen in place as he tried to get himself to recover from what just happened. Tessalynn swore that she saw a little smoke coming from his clothes.

"I am so sorry." Tessalynn spoke as she ran over to the boy, giving him a sympathetic look. "Electric just gets... A little protective of me sometimes." The boy just continued to stare. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah. I-I'm fine." He spoke, his words stuttering in his mouth. Well, at least he was talking, and standing for that matter.

Tessalynn grabbed onto his hand, feeling how his skin had heated up from the shock, and lead him over to the bench. "Here, maybe you need to sit down for a little." She pushed him down and watched as he flopped down on the bench, his eyes still seeming to be in a daze.

It took about another fifteen minutes before the boy finally came back to himself. Tessalynn had settled herself for trying to talk to him and make sure that he was okay, while also scolding Electric a little. She knew the pokemon wasn't listening. Either way, it's not like she could really scold him for what he did; he was only trying to protect her after all, so how could she be mad? Besides, it was pretty funny when it happened.

"What happened back there?" The boy asked.

"Electric shocked you. I guess I should warn you that the slightest thing can tick him off, and he's not afraid to attack anyone." She shrugged and gave him a meek smile. "But, I guess you can take that as in introduction in a way."

"An introduction? I've never had one like that before." The boy ran a hand over his face as he leaned over. "This is how I never understood how people can train electric type Pokemon. It seems like too much trouble."

Though Electric was probably offended by the comment, Tessalynn laughed. "Yeah well, it can be a little difficult, but you've just got to work with them like any Pokemon really. Eventually you get used to the shocks though."

The boy smirked. "And I assume you are?"

"Yep! Electric's shocked me so many times that it doesn't even really affect me anymore. Now I'm sure that I probably have enough electricity running through my body to charge up a Pokemon Center, at least it doesn't bother me anymore." She raised an eyebrow before a sly smile slithered across her lips. "Hopefully you won't start twitching."

"Twitching?"

"Yeah. You know, like having your eye twitch for no reason at times? It would be worse though; you're whole body would probably shake." A grave look came to the boys face as he listened to what Tessalynn was saying. He looked over himself, but when Tessalynn started laughing he looked up at her. "I'm just kidding. Don't look so scared."

The boy sighed in relief. "Oh, well that's good to know. I thought I was going to start looking like some freak." They both laughed, and when their noises died down, everything was quiet around them save for the noises coming from people who continued to mill around.

"Like I said before, I'm sorry for having that happen to you. You just kind of startled me, and it's Electric's natural reaction to do something about it." She looked down at Electric and pet his head, smiling fondly down at the Pokemon. She turned her attention back to the boy. "I hope you're not too hurt though."

He shook his head and waved his hand dismissively. "No worries. It was my fault it happened anyway, so there's nothing for you to be sorry about." He smiled. "Besides, I'm tough. I can handle something like that."

"Well it sure didn't look like it before when it looked like you were going to pass out." She watched as his cheeks turned a soft red color and laughed again. She bumped her shoulder into his lightly. "I'm kidding."

He ran a hand through his hair. "You kid a lot." He turned his head to look at her.

"Yeah well, it keeps me going, you know?" She shrugged.

Again they were both silent, not really sure what to say. A few more people passed them, but this time when they did two little kids came running past. They stopped in their tracks as they looked over at Tessalynn, giving her an odd look before they pointed at her and laughed. So, even the little kids knew about her moment in the contest? Great. Quickly they ran off, their giggles and fits of laughter going right along with them. "So I really am the laughing stock now." Tessalynn leaned forward, hunching her back over. "I can't believe it."

"It's not that bad." He put a hand on her shoulder. "Eventually they'll forget about it."

Again she shrugged. "Yeah. Right. We'll just have to see about that." At the mention of the towns people, it made Tessalynn remember why she even was still in this town. She sat up straighter, almost abruptly, and clapped her hands together. "I thought you were supposed to show me around and tell me about this place." She put her hands on her hips.

As if just remembering it too, the boy shrugged his shoulders. "I was feeling up to it before I got shocked, but now?" He seemed to think about it for a minute. "I just don't feel like it."

The thought dampened Tessalynn's spirit, and she once again slumped herself in the bench. "But how about tomorrow? I don't work, so I've got all day." She looked back at him, a little more hopeful now.

"I don't know," she said, leaning back in the seat. "I will miss a whole day of traveling then, and I'm ready to head into the next town." She, too, paused but smiled a little after thinking about it. "But I think I can lose a day." Again she thought that it might have been crazy to agree to let him show her around, but after talking to him just for a little bit made her feel better about him. At least he had a sense of humor and didn't completely blow his top off after being shocked. Most people would have yelled at her and Electric, which probably would have made the situation a lot worse.

"Good then." He flashed her a grin before standing up, wobbling a little in the process. "We can meet here again in the morning. Say... Seven o'clock?" When Tessalynn nodded her head, he gave her a curt nod. "I guess I'll see you then." He started to walk off, but again, like in the diner, Tessalynn stopped him.

"You won't be late again will you?" She stood up and tilted her head.

He shook his head, and after that he walked off again, his figure retreating into the distance. Tessalynn watched as he walked off, smiling as she turned to Electric and motioned for him to follow her. They were going to have a long day ahead of them, and she figured that they needed their rest.

Nevertheless, when Electric started walking beside Tessalynn as they headed to the Pokemon Center to get a nights rest, he couldn't help but feel as if something was wrong. He looked up at his trainer and watched as she seemed happy. When she looked down at him, she frowned a little. "Everything okay, Electric?" The Pokemon turned his head in the other direction, grumbling something as he looked about. So, thinking that he was just in one of his moods, Tessalynn shrugged the matter off and continued on her way, oblivious to the way that Electric was acting.

* * *

**AN: Hope you all liked this! The next chapter will be out very soon, but I won't keep you all waiting for it long. Read and Review please! (:**


	3. Chapter 2

**AN: Here is chapter 2! The updates for this story will probably be once a day, maybe sometimes twice, for a while, so there won't be that much of a wait for the chapters. **

**Thanks for the reviews, even though there aren't that many. I really appreciate it, and it makes me feel good. (:**

**Hope you all will like this chapter!**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

"You know you never told me your name, right?"

As promised, Tessalynn and the waiter had met each other back at the diner at seven o'clock sharp. Actually, the boy was a little early, which surprised Tessalynn when she had made it over there. Like last night, she had expected him to be late, but the fact that he made a point to actually make it on time made her feel better. So maybe she could depend on him a little. The thought of meeting up with him ran through her mind all night, making her almost completely forget about the man she had seen at the contest hall, though his presence still lingered in the back of her mind.

She wondered all about what he would show her and tell her, wondering if he was leading her into some trap or not. So far, she had no reason to believe that he was trying to deceive her, but she still was going to keep a good eye on him. Never trust someone that you hardly know, she was always told as a child, especially someone you don't know the name of. And she still had yet to know the name of the waiter.

Currently the two were sitting in a booth in the diner, people already coming and going in the early morning. The waitress who was serving them had just dropped off their drink orders -a coffee for the boy and a Moomoo milk for Tessalynn while Electric had a water- and had gotten their orders of food. She walked off and headed to the back shortly after.

"Didn't you read my name tag yesterday?" He took a sip of the coffee while he eyed Tessalynn.

"Didn't you forget to introduce yourself to me when you came to take my order?" Tessalynn raised an eyebrow, giving him a bit of a challenging look.

"Touche." He set the cup back on the table. "Then again, it's not like you made a point to introduce yourself to me either."

"I figured you knew who I was from the contest."

"Don't you know what happens when you assume things?"

"Yeah, yeah." She rolled her eyes and waved her hand in front of herself. "So what, you didn't watch the contest?"

"Nope. Just heard about it from the people who came in here." He shrugged. "I don't think anyone mentioned your name anyway, other than the 'Choker.'"

"I did not choke." Tessalynn sent a glare his way when she watched him smirk, trying to cover up the expression by holding the mug up to his lips. "I, no _we,_ just got distracted is all." She looked down at Electric who sat next to her, raising on his back legs to drink his water. He grunted at her words, ignoring her.

"Right." He took another sip of his coffee.

"Now you sound like that girl from yesterday." Tessalynn rolled her eyes as she heaved a sigh and took a sip of her drink.

"You mean Adrianna? The red head?"

At the mention of the girl's name, Tessalynn picked her head up and stared at the boy. "You know her?"

"Who doesn't?" At the glare he was sent, the boy leaned back in his seat. "Obviously you don't..." He scratched the back of his neck. "Anyway, she's kind of a celebrity around here. She's won a couple of contest ribbons in the past years, competed in a couple of Grand Finales. Never won, but she's been the runner up every year for the past three years. I still don't understand why this town worships her as if she did win, but like I said before these people are different." He shrugged.

"So she is a coordinator, like I thought. But you said she's never won a Grand Finale?" He shook his head. "Weird. Then why do they treat her like they do?"

"Probably because no one has ever come out of here as 'big' as she has. No Pokemon champions have ever come from here, or any successful professors. I guess they just figure that she can bring a little fame to this place, but if you ask me I doubt if she'll win this year. If she hasn't won yet, what makes them think that she can?"

"Anything can happen though, especially with contest." That Tessalynn knew for a fact.

"So you're defending her after the way she treated you yesterday?"

The comment made Tessalynn blush, and she turned her head to look in the opposite direction. "It's not that I'm defending her or anything," she started, crossing her arms over her chest, "it's the fact that I know to expect the unexpected."

He smirked. "Spoken like someone who has experienced the unexpected too many times."

The two stared at each other for a few moments, staying silent as they let the words of the conversation sink in. It was until then that Tessalynn had realized that the boy had blue eyes with specks of green hidden in their wake. It was so weird, she thought, how someone could have eyes like that when she was cursed with the boring, dull dark brown colored eyes. When she realized that she was staring she turned her head away and looked down.

His last sentence stuck in her mind. "Spoken like someone who has experienced the unexpected too many times." She thought about it, wondering if it was true. It might be, but wasn't it only natural that someone would expect things to go wrong, or at least not go as planned? For her that seemed to be how her life was anyway.

* * *

Their food finally came, and the two ate in silence for the majority of the time, only saying short comments to each other. It seemed as if a little bit of tension had risen between the two, and even Electric was able to sense it. He looked between the two during the course of the meal, but would quickly go back to his food when nothing was happening.

The boy had offered to pay for the meal, and while Tessalynn had refused at first, when he didn't budge she decided to give up the argument. His whole excuse for paying the meal was the fact that it was his duty to show her around for the day, which meant paying for things for her. Who could argue with that?

After the meal was paid for they headed out of the diner and started around the town, starting with the 'down town district' as the boy liked to call it. He showed Tessalynn a lot of the shops that were around, telling her that the things that they sold weren't like anything in any other region- so he had heard anyway- and that everything was reasonably priced. Well, at least he was right about the things being different.

The decorations had been pulled down from the previous night, and everything seemed at least a little bit normal. Still there were advertisements hanging about, but the streamers and other decorative lights and banners that had been hanging from buildings were all gone now. There weren't as many people around either, which served as a bonus for Tessalynn and the boy; they didn't have to try to duck and dodge so many people on the streets.

"How come all the festivity seems to be gone now?" Tessalynn spoke up as she looked around. "What happened to all the lights and everything?"

The boy turned to look at Tessalynn. "They take all of it down after the contest in this town are over with." With the confused look Tessalynn gave, he shook his head. "It kind of revolves back around to Adrianna. They do this with every contest here that they know she will be taking part in to try and bring her spirits up, so to speak, and to cheer her on. It's like a celebration, and it goes on all night, which is why so many people were out last night. Usually it's not that busy."

"Oh, now I get it." She nodded her head and shrugged her shoulders. So they really did treat Adrianna like royalty around here. Odd, but maybe it was understandable. The town just wanted to have someone to be proud of, though having the whole town decorated just for one day did seem a little ridiculous.

But Tessalynn understood a little more as they continued about. A lot of the things that he was showing her she had seen the night before, but being able to know what these places actually were and what they stood for was interesting to learn. She learned that this town had no Pokemon Gym, so the contest were their main form of entertainment, which is why they went to so much trouble with it. There were a lot of businesses around as well, not just restaurants and other little shops, but actual businesses that shipped things to other cities, but not other regions. Most of the businesses were held in the taller, skyscraper looking buildings. All sold different products, though the boy didn't go into much detail about it. Obviously it wasn't that important.

By the time noon rolled around, the trio were heading in the opposite direction. "We're going to the quieter part of town, where most of the houses are located at," the boy said as he looked back at Tessalynn and Electric. "There's a little restaurant up there as well that's really good. We can have lunch there."

"Finally! Some food." At the mention of food, Tessalynn's stomach growled. She groaned and pat her stomach before she gave the boy a meek smile when he laughed.

"And maybe we should get there quickly."

* * *

As promised, the food was really good there as well, a little better than the food in the down town district in Tessalynn's opinion. The food in this region, so far, was different from the food in any other regions she had been to, though she was happy that she had the boy with her to tell her what something was that was on the menu. It was a wonder how some places could be so different.

They strolled down the dirt path, watching children and their Pokemon running around, chasing each other, and they watched as the parents supervised their children, some of them having their own Pokemon with them. Hardly were there any flowers about this place, but the grass was green and and it seemed like the dirt, or gravel she really couldn't tell the difference, had just been changed. The houses around the places were quaint, small buildings that were probably only one story, all of them different colors like the buildings in the city part of the town. It was quiet too, and peaceful, but Tessalynn wondered if it was too quiet. Maybe that was just how people were around here. It was such a contrast to the down town district.

He told her about how old some of these houses were and how many people had refurbished them during the span of the last couple of years. He mentioned that more people had been coming here as well and moving in, though they all kept this air of quiet and peacefulness to the area. It was as if it there was a rule here to be so quiet, and when Tessalynn actually asked him that question the boy merely laughed. "No, it's just how people like it around here. No one wants to mess that up."

This place really was nice, so maybe Tessalynn's earlier thoughts about this place were wrong. Still she could feel people staring at her, but they would turn their attention to the boy when they caught sight of him and wave, instantly forgetting about her. She figured he must have grown up here, but she didn't ask.

Soon it had gotten dark out, but the three were still in the 'country' (as Tessalynn liked to consider it) side of town, walking around. The boy had picked up a couple of ice cream cones for him and Tessalynn, and soon they found themselves sitting on a dock that over looked the lake of the town. The water was crystal clear, a few ripples sprouting here and there every once in a while, hinting at the fact that there were probably Pokemon living in there. She wondered what kind did. They had taken their shoes off and dangled their legs off the edge, Tessalynn's toes only barely able to touch the water, but Electric had settled himself for sitting in Tessalynn's lap, dozing off after a couple of minutes of laying there.

The two were silent for a while and just basked in the tranquility that was surrounding them, the earlier tension gone now. "I still feel like you're avoiding my question," Tessalynn finally spoke.

The boy turned his head to her with the ice cream in his mouth, mumbling something incoherent towards her. "I mean about your name. You haven't told me yet."

He swallowed the ice cream and shrugged his shoulders. "You still haven't told me yours either, and it's not like you've brought it up since this morning." He smirked.

Tessalynn groaned and rolled her eyes. Boy he sure was difficult. "Okay, so now I'm asking again. What's your name?"

He seemed to think about it for a while, but lifted his head to look up after a while. "Still not telling you."

Tessalynn furrowed her brows, becoming frustrated now. "Oh, come on! Why won't you tell?" She leaned over a little to look at him.

Still he didn't look at her, but he smirked. "Because you won't tell me yours."

"You make no sense."

He chuckled a little and shook his head. "Obviously you haven't learned your manners. Tisk, tisk." He waved his finger in the air, moving it from side to side. He looked at Tessalynn then. "Don't you know that it's impolite to ask for someone's name when you haven't even introduced yourself?"

Tessalynn gave him an incredulous look, her mouth hanging open slightly. "You have got to be kidding me, right?" When they boy shook his head, she almost couldn't believe that he was actually being serious. "Fine, fine." She pointed to herself. "I'm Tessalynn Stone, and this is Electric." She pointed down to the Electrike that sat on her lap, his breathing even as he slept. She turned her head to look at the boy, smiling at him. "So now, who are you?"

Again the boy seemed to think about the question. He tapped his finger on his chin as he made a little 'hmm...' noise. "I'm Scott Harrison."

Tessalynn watched him, debating on whether or not she wanted to believe him or not. "Really?"

"Do you want me to get my name tag?"

She shook her head then. "No, I guess I believe you."

Scott laughed. "You don't sound convinced."

"Well it did seem like you had to think about it..."

"Trust me, it's my name. Ask anyone around here." He leaned back and laid his back against the dock. He rested his hands on the back of his head and breathed in a sigh.

Again the conversation took another stop, but it wasn't awkward. This time, though, Scott had disrupted it. "Why did you come here? To this region I mean."

Tessalynn looked down at Scott, thinking about his question. "I guess I just wanted to see something different. To have better opportunities for myself and to hopefully win the Grand Finale here." She shrugged her shoulders. "I know it's kind of a generic answer, and I'm sure you've heard that so many times, but it's true."

Scott leaned back up, giving her confused look. "So you knew about this place before?"

"Not really. I mean, Professor Oak, a professor in the Kanto region, told me a little about this place. He didn't tell me a lot since he hasn't been here either, but he told me all that he knew of this place." She watched as Scott furrowed his brows, making her tilt her head a little. "Why?"

He shook his head. "It's nothing really. Just... Curious is all." He seemed to look Tessalynn up and down. "What did he tell you?"

"Why so interested suddenly?"

"Just curious."

"Hmm..." She remembered back to when she had went to Professor Oak's lab after having come back from the Sinnoh region and how excited he seemed to be about things. "It wasn't that long ago, but he told me about this new region that he had discovered. Well, not really discovered since he had a feeling that people lived here, but it was new to him. He had never seen this region before, but he did do a lot of research about it, not that he got a lot of information about this place. Seems like it has kind of been contained. Almost like a secret, in his words anyway." She could picture in her mind that day and how he sat at his computer for hours, reading any kind of information about this place. She remember how frustrated he had gotten too, when there wasn't much information about the Pokemon that resided in the area.

"For a few months he continued to try and get any kind of information about this place, and while he got a little it didn't really satisfy him. He kept me up with the information that he was receiving so I wanted to know more about this place too. Every time he came up with something new, he would call me and tell me about it and tell me to come over to his office. It wasn't until he found a few articles, recent articles at the time, did we get more curious about this place. The article talked about the Pokemon and the people here. They said some were hostile while others were calm, though we weren't really sure who they were talking about; the Pokemon or the people. A lot of the articles talked about how small the region was, saying that it was a lot smaller than a lot of the regions around, but it was... Different too, though it never specified why." She shrugged her shoulders. "Really that was all we found out about this place, other than the fact that gyms and contest were here too."

She knew she had rambled, and had probably strayed off point, but she felt that she had to tell Scott that. He seemed a little interested in what she had said though, if only because he had listened to the whole thing. He turned his head and looked into the water after she had finished speaking, and she wondered what he was thinking.

"So, basically he sent you out here to investigate?" He looked at her, but she wasn't able to read the expression that was on his face.

"No, not really. Like I said, I came here for the contest once I found out that there were some here, and I came here to see a new place. I mean, yeah I'm going to be updating Professor. Oak about the things that I see and experience here, but this isn't a total investigation assignment or anything like that." She snorted. "If that was the case, he would have been here himself had he had the time. He wouldn't want me to come out here and do all that for him."

It seemed to surprise Scott from the look on his face, but his features soon softened and he ran a hand through his hair. "Well, at least you're not here to try and take this place over."

"What?" Now it was Tessalynn's turn to be surprised. "What do you mean by that?"

Scott looked back into the water, staying quiet. It concerned Tessalynn if only because she thought she had said the wrong thing. "Nothing. It doesn't matter." He waved his had dismissively and went to stand up, but stopped when Tessalynn grabbed onto his wrist.

"It does matter. What did you mean?" She let go of his wrist, thinking that he was going to move, but he didn't. "You said that you would tell me about this place, but you've only been telling me about the basics." She stared at him intently. "Why was this region so hard to research?"

Scott smirked as he looked down at Tessalynn. He outstretched his hand to her, palm out, offering to help her up. "You know, I like you. You're interesting and persistent."

"And you avoid my questions." Tessalynn moved her legs to shake Electric a little, and when the Pokemon got off her, she grabbed onto Scott's hand and stood up.

"That's a conversation for another time." He shrugged. "But it's getting late now. I think we should call it a day."

Though it disappointed her that she wasn't going to get the answers that she wanted, Tessalynn couldn't deny the fact that she was tired. It really was late, and it surprised her that they had been out for so long. A few clouds hung over head, but stars could be seen in the sky. You could here the occasional Kricketune playing a song of it's own in the distance. "Fine, but I expect to get answers to my questions." She put her free hand on her hip. "And you can't avoid them."

"Yeah? Well, we'll see about that." He pulled Tessalynn along the way, and as she went along she realized that they weren't going back to the down town district where the Pokemon Center was.

"Hey, I thought the Pokemon Center was that way?" She pointed in the opposite direction.

"It is," Scott said with a nod. "But that's not where we're going. It'll take too long to get there and back, and frankly I don't want to have to walk back over here in the dark. So, you're staying at my place."

She wasn't sure why, but the words he spoke made her blush. It wasn't until then, either, that she realized that their hands were still enclosed with each others, and when she looked down to see the interlocked digits, she couldn't help but smile a little. "Well this is interesting. All you've done was show me around, and you're already taking me to your house? We hardly know each other." The playfulness could be detected in her voice.

"I'm a fast kind of guy though." He turned to look at her. "Can you keep up with me?" Something seemed to glint in his eyes as he said those words, as if he had an idea in his mind. It didn't seem to faze Tessalynn though, because she merely smirked and shrugged her shoulders.

"I guess we'll just have to see."

* * *

**AN: So, what did you all think? This is definitely one of my favorite chapters, but there will be more to come soon!**

**Thanks for reading, and review please!**


	4. Chapter 3

**AN: So, I haven't updated this in the past couple of days, which I'm really sorry about. I've just been really busy with things here, but I'll start updating this like I have been the past couple of times. Well, here is chapter 3 of this story. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Tessalynn groaned as something poked at her face. She closed her eyes tighter, trying to block out what ever it was that was trying to wake her. She waved her hand in front of her face, smacking away what ever it was that was in front of her. "Go away..." She mumbled, her words soon being muffled by the pillow that she burrowed her face in. Still though, the being before her persisted, and instead of poking her face, it settled for poking the side of her head. She groaned again, this time a little louder, and instead of just trying to hide her face she turned her body around to face the other way. All seemed to be well for a while until she could feel puffs of air blowing into her face. Now, she was giving up.

Peeking one eye open, things were blurry in her vision for a minute. Thing were finally taking shape though, and when they finally did, the first thing she saw was a pink blob right in her face. Beady eyes stared intently at her, and the creature in front of her opened its mouth, it's stubby little arms outstretched before it. The two seemed to have a stand off for a few seconds, a dazed and confused look on Tessalynn's face as she tried to make sense of what was in front of her, and the Pokemon in front of her having a wide grin stretched across its face. Soon, everything went black in Tessalynn's eyes as the Pokemon stuck itself to her face.

It took her a second to realize what happened, and soon after Tessalynn started thrashing about, her screams muffled by the Pokemon's body. She tried to pry it off her face, but to no avail. It was beginning to get harder to breath, and she swore that she started seeing spots swimming before her eyes. So this was how she was going to end, huh? By the suffocation of a Pokemon? She gripped onto the side of the Pokemon and tried to pull it off, but her fingers slipped through the Pokemon. What the...

The body on her face was ripped away from her, and finally Tessalynn was able to get a breath of air. She found herself sitting on the hardwood floor then, one of her arms leaning against the couch that she had slept on last night. She put a hand on her chest as she look ahead of her, watching as Electric pinned the Pokemon- who she could now clearly see was a Ditto- to the ground and growled at it. But she knew that look in her Pokemon's eyes, and she knew that she needed to stop him. She did not want to be responsible for paying back Scott for any damages that could happen to his house.

"Electric... Just calm down. I'm sure it didn't mean anything." She put her hands out in a defensive motion as if that was actually going to calm the Pokemon down. It didn't, and it actually seemed as if he was ignoring her. "Oh boy."

Sparks were flying off of Electric as he started charging himself up, his teeth bared as he stared down at the Ditto. He soon let loose his Spark attack, but it did nothing to the normal type under him. Ditto had transformed into an Electrike, the only main difference between it and that Pokemon being it's face, before the lightening had hit it. It took Electric's ability, which enabled the Spark to have no affect on it.

The Ditto made a weird, sort of mewling kind of noise and kicked Electric, making him roll back and hit a lamp. It fell with a crash, the glass of the bulb shattering, but it didn't seem to affect the two Pokemon. The Electrike look alike taunted Electric and then took off around the living room. Electric chased after him, causing a bit of chaos to happen in the house. Pictures had fallen off the walls, books from the coffee table had fallen in a heap on the floor, and they even knocked a stool down that sat in the corner of the room. The rug with a floral decorative pattern was balled up from them running over it, and try as she might, Tessalynn just couldn't stop any of the havoc.

The two Pokemon finally stopped when the Ditto sat on one side of the room and Electric sat on the other, the both of them panting heavily. Electric grit his teeth as sparks continued to fly from his body. The sight must have been funny to the Ditto because it started laughing, which cause it to revert back into it's normal form, and pointed an arm at Electric.

Tessalynn sat back against the couch, her eyes wide as she looked at the mess they had made. How was she going to be able to explain this to Scott? He was going to kill her, and Electric, and then he was probably going to kick them out. And they hadn't even had anything to eat yet. But those thoughts were pushed from her mind when she saw Electric open his mouth and take a large gulp of air. "Electric no!" She ran over to the Pokemon and pounced on him, holding her arm over his mouth. He struggled against her hold, lifting her up from the floor a little, but then tumbling right back down under her weight.

Man she had forgotten how much of a fight Electric could put up. She continued to hold the electric type down in hopes to get him to stop. "Just let it go, Electric. It's over now." She grit her teeth as she wrestled with the Pokemon. It still amazed her how she had to struggle against him sometimes.

"Hey what are you- What happened to my living room?"

Tessalynn and Electric stopped when they heard Scott's voice coming from the hallway. They picked their heads up to look at the boy, giving him a meek smile before Tessalynn scrambled off of Electric. She sat on the floor, her oversize night shirt sliding down her left shoulder a little. "Uhh... Good morning." She grinned, rubbing the back of her neck.

"What did you do?" Scott put his hands on his hips as he looked around. "I told you not to break anything!"

"Hey, it's not my fault this happened!" Tessalynn countered back. "Had that Ditto not attacked me none of this would have happened!" She pointed to the Ditto that hid behind Scott's leg, peeking its head over a little.

"And you honestly expect me to believe that Ditto could do all of this?" He picked the Ditto up and held it against his chest. "Ditto's not even capable of causing that much damage."

"When it changes into another Pokemon it sure can."

"And what Pokemon could it have possible changed into?"

Tessalynn lowered her head a little as she looked up at the boy. "Uh, hello? Have you forgotten about him?" She pointed to Electric who was glaring at the normal type Pokemon. She gave Scott an almost smug look when she noted the look of embarrassment that showed on the boys features.

Scott sighed and turned Ditto around to face him. "What did you do?" The Pokemon seemed to talk back to him, waving it's hands in the air before it pointed back at Electric. The action only spurred Electric, and he probably would have attacked again had Tessalynn not shot him a glare.

"Fine, I'm sorry for yelling at you." He frowned at Tessalynn's smirk. "But don't think you're off the hook yet. Your Pokemon still had something to do with this mess. So, I think it's only right that you clean it up."

Tessalynn shot up from the floor, her cheeks puffed out. "No way! I'm not cleaning this up! I didn't do it, so why should I?"

"Because it was your Pokemon that did it. Besides, don't you think you owe me something from yesterday?"

She knew he had her then. Oh, why did she let him pay for everything yesterday? "Fine. Whatever." She should have known that she was going to regret it one way or another. She said nothing though and pushed Electric with her foot. "You're helping me clean this too," she said to the Pokemon, and when he barked back at her she shook her head and looked down at him. "Hey, you're the one who did this, and since I have to clean up, so do you."

Electric snorted and turned his back to her. "Do you want to go back in your Poke ball?" He growled and turned to his trainer, glaring at her. She matched the glare, and the two stood like that for a few minutes before they turned around and started on the cleaning process.

* * *

"Whew, glad that's over with," Tessalynn spoke as she stepped out of the shower. It hadn't taken her and Electric as long to clean the living room as she had thought, though she would have rather have not had to do it at all. It had taken, all together, about twenty minutes to straighten everything back up, though she was convinced that it would have been shorter had she had not had to argue with Scott about where the broom and dust pan was. Honestly, why couldn't he be easier to deal with? She still had to pay him back for the lamp that was broken, unfortunately, though Scott had refused to take any of her money.

"You're money's useless to me," he had told her with a smug look. "You'll have to find another way to pay be back."

And when she remembered the wink that he gave her, she couldn't help but roll her eyes. She didn't understand him in the least bit. But, in a way, it just seemed to make things all the better. True she hadn't known him for that long, and he hadn't known her for that long, but she figured that he was an interesting enough person. Confusing, but interesting nonetheless.

Tessalynn looked at herself in the mirror as she dried off, stopping for a seconds as she peered closer into the mirror. With her dark complexion and slightly plump lips, she was almost a spitting image of her mother. A little bit lighter skinned, but almost the same. She turned her body to the side and sighed a little, taking in her appearance. With her petite body shape, she definitely wasn't one of the biggest people around, nor was she the tallest. But she liked her size. A few scars adorned her arms, as well as her torso from her adventures, but, unlike so many people, she loved them. It symbolized how much she had overcome, in her mind, and it just made her all the more strong. She wouldn't be the person she was had she not gone through so much.

She clothed herself before stepping out of the bathroom, but stopped and gasped as soon as she opened the door. She held one hand on the door, clutching the frame a little, as she grit her teeth. "Haven't you ever heard of personal space?" She narrowed her eyes at Scott.

"Yes actually. But in my house you don't have any, especially after what happened this morning." He looked her up and down. "So you girls really do take a long time in the bathroom... And you scare easily."

She rolled her eyes and pushed past him. "Like I said, this morning was not my fault. It was Electric's and Ditto's fault." She walked over to her bag and knelt down on the ground as she started to fold her night clothes. After that task was done, she put everything back in her bag, looking up as Scott stood over her. "You mind?"

He shook his head and chuckled. "You certainly aren't like most girls..."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"From the looks of it, your bag isn't very organized, and you can actually fit everything into one messenger bag, and not a very big one at that." He shrugged. "I thought girls were supposed to have so many things with them."

"I know how to travel light, thank you very much." She stood up and put her hands on her hips. "Besides, that's a stereotype; not all girls are like that."

Scott put his hands up. "Hey, I'm only going by what I hear."

"So you believe everything you hear?"

He said nothing for a moment, and when it looked like he was about to say something, he shook his head. "Nah, not everything."

Tessalynn studied the boy for a moment, wondering what he meant by that, but shook her head after a while. It was pointless anyway. She looked down at Electric as he sat down next to her. Obviously his earlier frustration towards her was gone now. She pat the top of his head before turning back to Scott. "Well anyway, thanks for everything yesterday. I really appreciate you showing me around, despite the fact that I won't be staying in this town." She shrugged. "At least there's one nice person around." When she heard him laugh, she blinked a couple of times. "What's so funny?"

"Who said I was done showing you around?"

Again Tessalynn just stared at him, giving him an almost dumb look. "What are you talking about?"

"You don't honestly believe that I would just let you wander around in a region that you have no clue about alone, do you?"

"I guess I just assumed that you would just be showing me around here."

"Ahh, see, but that's where you're wrong. Didn't I tell you not to assume things?" He waved his finger towards Tessalynn.

"I... Guess not?" Okay, so things were definitely taking a turn in a different direction for Tessalynn. She just stayed over his house for the night, and how he was going to be traveling with her? How in the world did he come up with things like this?

"Right. Now come on, we've got a lot of traveling to do if we want to make it to the next town before the next contest." He motioned for Tessalynn to follow as he hoisted one strap of his backpack over his left shoulder. He started towards the door then, Ditto quickly scrambling after him.

"Woe, hold on now! Stop!" Tesssalynn furrowed her brows as she tried to come to terms with the event that just happened a few seconds ago. When Scott turned to look at her, his hand on the door, he made a little 'hm' noise. "Who says that I actually want you to travel with me? I've got enough company with Electric."

He seemed to take what she said into consideration, but when he chuckled again, Tessalynn knew he hadn't really though about what she said. "Me, obviously."

"I'll be just fine with traveling on my own. I don't need you to come along." She started walking towards the door and stood there, waiting for him to move out the way. She looked up at the boy, raising an eyebrow at him. "And I don't want you to."

"Well too bad. You're stuck with me, and there's nothing you can do about it." He smirked. "Once Ditto stuck to your face, it was a done deal." He opened the door then and walked out, taking a few steps off the porch before he turned back around to look at Tessalynn. "What are you waiting on? We've already lost a day, and like I said before, we've got a long way to go."

Tessalynn stood at the door, her mouth open wide. This was making no sense. She stomped her foot on the ground and crossed her arms. "I told you, I don't need you to come along. I'm more than capable of taking care of myself without you."

Scott gave her a disbelieving look. "Do you even have a map?"

"Of course I... Don't. Great." Her Poke Gear had never downloaded the map to this region like it did with every other region had she ever been to. She thought it might have been a connection screw up, but still the map had never come up. Maybe it really was time she upgraded her Pokegear... She smacked herself in the face and groaned.

"Thought so." He picked Ditto up and put it on his shoulder. "Just think of me as your personal map.

"Why can't I just buy a map for myself?" She dropped her hand and peered at the boy.

"Because your money is useless here." He sighed. "I'm beginning to think you don't listen to me."

"No, you told me that my money was useless to you, not useless to this whole region." She spread her arms out, as if to emphasize the fact that she meant the whole region.

"Oh, well yeah. We use different money than you do. Or used to anyway."

"I don't understand." Tessalynn said as she shook her head.

Scott sighed and fully turned his body to face Tessalynn. "Okay, let me break it down. Sometimes money works in some places, while-"

"I get that part." Tessalynn said, stopping his little speech "What I don't understand is how I paid for my meal the other day at the restaurant. You say my money doesn't work, so why did you take it?"

"Call me being the nice guy." He held one strap of the bag in his hand. "Oh, and you owe me for that too."

She narrowed her eyes a little. "So you paid for that meal too?" He nodded his head. "But you didn't give my money back?"

"Why would I? It's useless everywhere, so there was no point in giving it back to you. I'm just trying to help you out a little."

"Can't I just convert my money into yours? I'm sure there's got to be a machine like that around here that can do it."

Again, Scott shook his head. "Nope. Nothing like that in this region. Sorry."

A disappointed look came to Tessalynn's face. Her shoulders slumped over a little, and she hung her head down. "Hey, look it's not all that bad. Like I said, I'll teach you all you need to know about this region." She looked up at him, surprised to see a soft smile upon his lips. "Just trust me, okay?"

She wanted to trust him, but she didn't know if she could. Not yet anyway. "What about your job? Don't they think it'll be weird once you stop showing up?"

"Oh that? I quit the other day." He waved his hand, as if it didn't matter in the least bit. "Remember when I was late meeting you the other day? That's why."

She laughed. "So you planned this ahead of time?"

He smirked. "Of course." He hit his chest with his fist. "I'm always prepared, and always planning ahead." He tilted his head to the side. "I was wanting to go on a journey soon anyway. You coming here just gave me a reason to."

"So you should thank me for that." She grinned, but it dropped at the shake of his head.

"Nah, not yet. Maybe later though." He chuckled before he extended his hand out to her. "Now come on, we've wasted enough time here talking. There's nothing in this town anyway, and I'm sure you want to redeem yourself in the next contest, right, Tessalynn?"

The way he looked at her reminded Tessalynn of the way he had the night before on the dock when they were getting ready to leave. She didn't know why, but she couldn't help but feel a tingling in her stomach. The funny thing about that though was the fact that it wasn't unpleasant at all. "Yeah, you're right." She didn't take his hand as she stepped off the porch and started walking ahead of him, Electric at her heels like always.

* * *

It didn't take them long to make it to the edge of town, but before they stepped over the invisible boarder, the both of them stopped, standing side by side, Tessalynn about a head shorter than Scott. "Ready to start on you're new adventure?" He asked her, a sense of anxiousness in his voice.

"Yep, let's get this started." She nodded her head and grinned. After that, the four figures departed down the dirt path that lead out of town.

Behind them was a sign, welcoming people into the town. With royal blue lettering and a gold trimming to it with a white base on it, the sign it read: "Welcome to Hajime Town of the Shima Region. A place of new beginnings."

* * *

**AN: Thanks for reading! Review please and tell me what you think about it. (:**


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